


Under my Umbrella

by sky_fish



Category: Arashi (Band)
Genre: Getting to Know Each Other, M/M, Romance, Umbrellas
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-03
Updated: 2018-04-07
Packaged: 2019-03-13 02:45:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 14,942
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13561062
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sky_fish/pseuds/sky_fish
Summary: Sometimes, sharing an umbrella with a stranger is only the beginning.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> After about a month not being able to write, I felt a flash of inspiration and it's the perfect timing - Happy Birthday, Aida! ♥ The idea behind this is surely nothing new, but I still hope you enjoy this little fic :) It's short and it's not even finished yet so this is only the first part, but there will be more, soon. Hope you enjoy. Thanks to Kittykaty and jtayt for beta reading!

Despite the cloudy weather, today could have been a much worse day than what it eventually turned out to be, Sho thought.

His mother (again) sent a bunch of marriage candidate applications to his e-mail address at work, and he (again) had to explain to her during lunch break via phone that he was a very happy mid-thirties single who was completely satisfied with work and life. He did not need a wife. But, he managed to calm down quite well after work.

Besides his job as a travel magazine editor, there were just a few more things Sho loved. His family, of course - even with his parents pushing him towards marriage, which he wasn't interested in, travelling, reading, and a cup of tea or coffee. These last few things, Sho was able to combine when he visited his favourite café just a few steps from his work place, as he did today after an exhausting afternoon.

The smell of the freshly brewed coffee welcomed him as soon as he entered the familiar place, and as soon as Sho breathed it in, he felt his muscles relax and the corners of his lips curl up into a smile. One of the regular waiters came closer while Sho put his umbrella away into the stand next to the door. Since spring weather was crazy, and you never knew when you would need one, he was used to bringing an umbrella just in case, which was almost every day recently. The waiter greeted Sho with a friendly smile and guided him to his usual seat, a small table, offering just enough space for two people – if Sho would be willing to share – in the back corner of the café, where Sho could watch over the whole room, while still being mostly undisturbed. He ordered the usual – cappuccino – for a start and pulled out the book he was currently reading. The coffee arrived just a few minutes later, and soon Sho was lost in the world of his book, surfacing only when a young waitress placed a slice of cheesecake in front of him – his favourite sweets – as a greeting from the kitchen. Shortly after, a guitar melody started to play.

Sho directed his look onto the small stage in the opposite corner, spotting a young-looking black-haired man sitting on a chair while holding a guitar in his hands, his small but cute fingers producing only a small sequence of warm notes at first, before gradually building up into something more complex, with accords being added, the variation of plugging and strumming the instrument's strings, giving more volume to the melody. The young man holding the guitar had his eyes closed, and he seemed completely lost in the music, unintentionally pulling the small audience in the cafe with him, as Sho quickly noticed.

It wasn't unusual for the café to offer live music, and Sho didn't mind it in the background. He considered it a nice service, and the people who used to play here were never bad. However, this time, something was different. Something about the music, something about the musician. The whole scene had something fascinating, and it became even more enchanting, when the guitar player parted his lips and started singing along to the melody of his instrument.

The man's voice was slightly rough, but warm at the same time. It carried so much feelings that the atmosphere his singing produced, gave Sho the most pleasant goosebumps he ever felt. The aura the man omitted, was calm and soothing, but in no way boring. It was enchanting. It was magic.

He caught himself holding his breath, as the musician finished the first chorus of his song and his fingers picked a short interlude on the guitar strings. Catching his breath, Sho quickly searched to make eye contact with one of the café's employees, the young woman who brought him the cake just a few minutes ago hurrying to his table.

"Who is that?" Sho asked under his breath, raising his eyebrows and subtly nodding in the direction of the musician. "He's new, isn't he?"

"Ah, I don't know his name but yes, he's new," the girl confirmed in a whisper. "Doesn't he have a beautiful voice?"

"Indeed...," Sho agreed, his lips forming into a smile, before he continued watching the man.

In fact, the man's voice was _so_ beautiful, that it was hard for Sho to focus onto anything else for the rest of his performance. Even if Sho managed to eat his cheese cake – it would be a waste otherwise - soon, his book was abandoned, closed, the bookmark peeking out at one side, waiting for its owner to take it back into his hands. Sho, however, was too immersed in the music. It's been a while since Sho just sat still and listened to music, and he had to admit that he enjoyed every minute of it.

In the end, Sho stayed a bit longer than usual. In what like felt a blink of an eye, the musician reached his last song, before which he directed a short message to the audience about how grateful he was to them listening to him. As soon as the man finished the song and started packing up, the café became busy again, with waiters and waitresses rushing from table to table to bill their customers, as it was apparently just around the closing hour.

Sho couldn't believe his eyes when he realized the time, so he quickly finished the last sip of his second serving of tea and paid the bill, promising to come back the next day.

Outside, it was raining. Sho hadn't noticed when it started, but once again he felt vindicated in his decision to carry an umbrella during this time of the year. He turned to the umbrella stand next to the door, took the item, and stepped outside, feeling the cold hitting his skin immediately. Apparently, not everyone had considered bringing an umbrella. Some people were trying to keep the rain out of their faces by wearing hoods and caps, two girls used their school bags as protection over their heads to prevent the rain drops from hitting them, and a young man just rushed by as fast as he could while the water coming down from the dark sky soaked him to the bones.

Sho opened up his umbrella, the heavy rain drops immediately drumming against the plastic, creating a rhythm that distantly sounded like a mantra. Stepping forward, the man intended to begin his way home, but he realized from the corner of his eye that there was still someone else standing in front of the café, he stopped and turned around to face that person.

It was the musician from before, his probably freezing hands pushed inside the pockets of his navy jacket, carrying his guitar case on his back. He didn't seem to have an umbrella with him, and apparently was trying to find shelter from the rain underneath the small canopy at the entrance of the café.

Glancing up, seeing the sky dark and cramped with pouring clouds, Sho didn't think twice before stepping in front of the musician and reaching out the hand holding the umbrella, covering the man's head with it. The musician, who was just a few cm shorter than Sho, looked up, his eyes gazing at him from beneath his black bangs, innocent and curious. For a few seconds, the two men just looked at each other, and soon, Sho wondered if he maybe just did something strange.

"Uhm, we can share my umbrella, if you want to," Sho finally said, the sentence almost a stumble. When he received a friendly smile from the man in front of him, he mirrored the gesture, chuckling, before he added, "Do you need a walk to the train station or something?"

"Thank you, that would be very kind. I forgot my umbrella… Actually, I'm taking the bus though," the musician said, his voice low, but painted in the same warmth like when he was singing.

"I can bring you to the bus station then," Sho smiled.

"It's OK, it's not far," the musician said, pointing at one direction with his thumb. "I'll just wait a little longer until the rain calmed down. I don't want to cause any inconvenience but thank you for the offer."

"The station down there?" Sho asked. "It's on the way to my train station, so there's no inconvenience at all, really. Who knows when it will stop raining, the weather is so unpredictable recently."

The man seemed to consider his options for a few seconds, looking up to the dark clouds, watching the heavy rain drops falling down, and then turned his gaze to Sho and his umbrella again.

"Well, if it's really no problem, it would be a big help," he said.

"No problem at all," Sho confirmed.

"Thank you," with a charming smile, the other man finally stepped forward.

Sho held his umbrella a little bit higher to make sure the musician's guitar bag wouldn't bump into it, being glad that he brought a large umbrella that could actually fit both of them underneath, and after exchanging another smile, the two started walking down the street.

"Your performance in there... was amazing," Sho said, feeling the need to say _something_ , just a few steps later.

"Thank you."

"I mean it!" Sho continued, enthusiastically. When do people nowadays have a chance to give face-to-face feedback? He wanted to make use of this chance. "You're a professional?"

"I'm not sure if you would call me a professional," the man chuckled in reply, "But I feel flattered that you think about me that way."

"I am convinced you are...," Sho tilted his head. "I mean, with your talent, people must want to hear you... how long have you been doing this?"

The musician's fascinating aura hadn't changed at all from the one he had during his performance, but the cute chuckle that followed seemed to break the calm pattern a bit. It was refreshing, Sho thought.

"Let's say, I'm not new to this," the man then said, not wanting to add further details apparently.

That man had something enigmatic, but Sho found that very interesting and appealing. Then, suddenly, as he took in more closely the image of the man besides him, something seemed to tickle his memories. There was a distant feeling of _knowing_ that man, but Sho just couldn't find the connection. He frowned.

"I am sorry, but... is it possible that we met before somewhere?" Sho couldn't help but asked. When the man next to him gave him a slightly surprised look, he continued. "Sorry for the question but… I feel like I know you from somewhere…"

The man's lips curled up into a cheeky smirk. "If we really met before, do you think you would forget me right away?"

Sho felt his cheeks turning red from embarrassment. "Oh gosh, sorry, no, I didn't mean to sound impolite, I just..."

"No worries," the musician replied, but not without shamelessly scanning Sho's face with his eyes, the smirk on his lips still in place. "But, I have to say that _I_ would definitely remember _you_ , if we met before."

Sho didn't really know how to reply to that statement, but he decided to consider it as a compliment, and stay silent for the rest of their walk, which didn’t last long anyway, and the stop sign of the bus station was already in their field of vision.

"Uhm… here we are," Sho said, slowing down his steps.

"Thanks for bringing me," the man beside him said, their eyes meeting once more.

"You're welcome. I just couldn't risk making such a talented singer like you catch a cold," Sho returned with a sincere smile.

"That's very considerate of you," the musician said, and his eyes stayed connected with Sho's, without any more words.

For some reason, Sho did not want their conversation to end, so he searched his brain for something smart to say or ask.

"Are we going to meet again?" was everything he managed to come up with, mentally cursing himself at how stupid that must sound. "I mean... are you going to play at the café again?"

The musician cutely tilted his head. "Maybe? I liked the audience there," he added, holding eye contact with Sho, who swallowed slightly. "If the owners would like to have me again, I'll probably agree,"

"I would love to hear you perform again," Sho replied, hoping he did not sound too pushy. Then, he was distracted by a tall vehicle that just turned around the corner. "Ah, your bus!"

The musician turned his head to watch the bus coming closer, and then, back at Sho. The latter wasn't sure if the musician was going to say something more, or if _he_ should say something more, so they stayed silent for the next few seconds, while the bus drew closer and came to a halt next to them.

As the sound of the bus door swinging open broke their silence, the young man smiled one last time at Sho.

"Well then, friendly stranger, see you soon," the man added before he turned to catch his bus.

Sho stayed, watching the bus driving off, until it couldn't be seen anymore through the rain. He then continued his way to the train station, feeling slightly confused. The smile on his face was still there though, and the hope of being able to witness another performance by the musician, repeated in his mind. The thought accompanied him for his whole trip back home and didn't leave him for the rest of the evening.

 

TBC


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Additional thanks to my beta jtaytt for her help ^^

Three days later, it was raining again. Like last time, Sho stayed longer at his favourite café, not even planning to leave before the musician, who was finally back after a two-day break, finished his performance. It was true, Sho had been waiting to see the man again. To listen to his beautiful voice again. It was as if Sho had fallen in love with that man's music. Today, too, he was unable to read a single page of his book during the man's performance, he was just sitting at his usual table, a warm cup of tea in his hands, and the lovely voice of the musician filling his heart and mind. He fully enjoyed listening to him and watching him.

Sho wasn't sure if he was imagining things, but when the man, during his thank you message to the audience after today's last song looked at him – or at least into his direction -, but he felt his chest tightening a little from the excitement of that possibility. After paying and having a short chat with the café owner, who brought the bill today, Sho watched the musician packing his stuff. The man sent a greeting to the nearby staff and turned, ready to leave the café. As far as Sho could see, the man – like last time – did not have an umbrella with him.

He quickly bid the owner good-bye and jumped up from his chair, hurrying towards the exit. Of course, Sho brought his umbrella, so he reached for the stand behind the door and took it back before pushing the door open, hoping, he wasn't already too late to put his plan into action.

He was lucky. There, when Sho slightly turned his head to the right, _he_ was, standing in the same spot like last time (and just as good-looking like last time), waiting for the rain to calm down. His beautiful eyes darted up into the dark rainy sky, before they slowly turned towards Sho.

Their eyes locked, and the musician smiled.

Sho took in a deep breath, slightly shifted his jacket in place and braced himself before he took the next step.

"I know now, who you are," he said as a greeting, with a – hopefully – calm voice and a – hopefully – confident smirk on his face, when he offered his umbrella to the other man for the second time since they met.

Slightly surprised, the musician raised an eyebrow. Then, he grinned. "Oh, do you?"

"I did my homework," Sho replied, sounding even a little proud, and nodded his head towards the direction of the bus-stop, accompanied with a questioned look. "Would you like me to bring you again? Since it's on my way..."

"Thank you," the other man said with a short nod before he stepped forward, accepting the offer much quicker than last time, and followed Sho. Strolling down the street, the slightly taller man was holding his umbrella between them, and their arms just a few centimetres apart.

"The more I thought about you, the more it nagged me," Sho began.

He received an adorable and amused chuckle as an answer.

"So you've been thinking about me? I feel honoured," the musician smiled cheekily, causing Sho's heartbeat to speed up a little.

Honestly, Sho had been thinking about _nothing else_ but that man, but he wasn't ready yet to admit that in front of him. He still wasn't completely sure, what all of this was about to mean. For him. For them. If there was a _them_... Maybe it didn't mean anything. Maybe, it would gain deeper meaning in the future. For now, Sho was just being a nice member of society, offering someone without an umbrella shelter from the rain, no more, no less. Right?

Although he was doing his best to stay composed, Sho had to fight an embarrassed blush crawling up his face, so he tried to get to the point quickly.

"Eventually, I remembered your face," he continued. "You played one of the main characters in a TV-series twelve years ago… and you've been in that popular game commercial for quite some time, portraying a magician armed with this huge bow and the magical arrows, until they changed their marketing concept. Right?" Sho smiled, pointing at the man.

The musician just looked at him, his expression with the same soft smile as before, but he didn't reply.

"So... I looked you up," Sho continued. "Your name is Ninomiya Kazunari, you're an actor. Even if... it seemed to have calmed down around you these past years..."

There was another cute chuckle, followed by an appreciating nod and a charming smile. "You really did your homework, apparently."

"So it's true!" Sho grinned even wider. The hours of research paid off. It had not been that easy, actually, to find these information, simply because Sho first couldn't remember the name of the series and had to find it through some roundabout ways. Suddenly, a terrifying thought crossed his mind. "Ah! I'm sorry, I don't mean to appear like a stalker or anything, I just -"

But the man besides him just shook his head and reached his hand to touch Sho's arm for a moment. This time, Sho definitely lost the fight against the blush on his cheeks. If the gesture was meant to calm Sho down, it actually had the complete opposite effect on him. The man's touch felt almost like electricity tickling Sho's skin. He swallowed.

"Don't worry, it's OK," Ninomiya said in his usual soft voice, breaking through to Sho. "In fact, I'm happy. I'm a little surprised though that someone still remembers me from back then."

"I liked that series...," Sho murmured, averting his eyes.

"It's not very well known," the other man replied, a slight hint of regret showing on his face for just a split second.

He didn't say more about it, neither did Sho, at least not for the next few steps, but then he just couldn't hold back his curiosity.

"May I ask, why you are not acting anymore?" the man asked, carefully. Despite being curious, he of course didn't want to hit a soft spot full on.

For a few more steps, the man besides him kept silent. Maybe, Sho had gone too far, he thought, already preparing the words for an apology, but just the moment he parted his lips to say them, it was the other man who spoke first.

"To be completely honest," the man started, looking at Sho, his eyebrows furrowed a little. Still, there was a smile on Ninomiya's lips. "It's not so easy to get roles with my face…"

"Are you kidding me?!" Sho exclaimed, abruptly stopping his walk. He was honestly shocked. "What are you talking about?! You have a really handsome face!"

When exactly that handsome face Sho was talking to broke out into laughter, the man's eyes thinning cutely over his slightly blushing cheeks, Sho felt his own head turning completely hot. He must look as red as a beetroot right now. Quickly, he bit his lower lip to prevent his bubbly mouth from saying anything more cringe worthy.

"Thank you, really," Ninomiya said once he caught his composure again. Together with Sho, he resumed walking. "If you looked up my face and name, surely you also know how old I am, right?"

Slowly, Sho nodded, even if he still absolutely did not get the point. Just like him, Ninomiya was a man in his mid-thirties, he even was a bit younger than him. However, with his face and his young looks, Ninomiya's age shouldn't be a problem in the entertainment industry. Or so, Sho thought.

"To be honest, most producers think I look too young for my age," the other man started to explain, triggering Sho to blink at his conversation partner in disbelief. "It's true. Did you notice the trending compliance between an actor's age and the age of the role he plays, nowadays?"

Now that Ninomiya mentioned it, he was absolutely right. Sho had indeed noticed the trend in the entertainment industry. While it was always an advantage to be young and attractive, another requirement was to actually look around one's age. It was the first time though that Sho encountered someone who seemed to have problems because he looked _too young_ for his age.

"Even if my management wants me to take castings for younger roles that match my looks better, most directors don't want that," Ninomiya continued. "They want it as realistic as possible. They want people to relate more to the role, allowing the audience to relate to the actors themselves as much as possible. There are lots of younger talents in the industry whom they are more interested in."

"But there are exceptions, aren't there?" Sho interjected, only to earn a slightly bitter smile.

"Then maybe, I'm simply just not good enough. Not for the big roles, at least."

"Don't say that, Ninomiya-san!" Sho burst. "You are very talented. I really liked you in that series!"

"Thanks, that means something to me," the other man replied, smiling softly at Sho. "But even if it's a pity, I actually don't mind it that much. I like my current situation."

"So now you're paying your bills with your music performances?"

"More or less," Ninomiya nodded, his smile growing happier again. "I get some small acting jobs in between, and I can make music on the side. I don't mind that. Music is my second passion. I'm lucky I can make use of it."

"You're very good at it," Sho said, not only to encourage the other man, but really meaning what he said.

Ninomiya chuckled. "You're very good too."

Sho frowned. "In what?"

"In making compliments," the other man replied with a teasing grin. "You can call me Nino, by the way. If you like, that is."

"Really?" Sho asked, beaming, before trying to calm down a bit. He nodded, trying to appear earnest. "Nino. Understood. That's a really cute nickname. It's simple. I like that."

"Thanks," Nino replied.

In the meantime, the two men came to a halt, as they arrived at the bus-stop. A car driving by caused the film of water on the streets to splash into their direction, so that Nino instinctively grabbed Sho's arm and pulled him back a little and the two men quickly jumped a few steps back to escape the splash. They looked at each other, laughing, before the musician's hand slowly let go of Sho's arm again. Somehow, the man missed the touch immediately.

"How about you?" the musician asked.

"Huh?" Sho frowned at him. He must have lost thread of their conversation somewhere in between one of Nino's charming smiles and the water disaster that almost threatened his good shoes and pants.

The younger man tilted his head cutely, and raised an eyebrow, challenging. "Are you going to tell me your name too or am I supposed to keep calling you _friendly stranger_?"

"Ah," Sho chuckled shortly. "That's what you mean. I'm sorry, I'm so impolite today...," he indicated a slight bow, making the best out of the limited space underneath the shared umbrella. "My name is Sakurai Sho."

"Well then, Sakurai Sho, next time we meet, I'd like you to tell me something about _you_. That'd just be fair, wouldn't it?" Nino suggested, his smirk irresistible.

"Well, if you insist...," Sho agreed slightly reluctant, reaching his free hand to scratch his neck slightly embarrassed.

A second later, he spotted the bus, drawing closer to the stop. Sho cursed slightly. Even if the situation had turned a little bit embarrassing, he certainly wouldn't mind waiting a little longer together with the other man. To talk a bit more. Or just look at him, Sho probably wouldn't mind that either.

"Oh, it's already time," Nino said once he noticed the bus too. He turned to Sho again. "Thank you very much for another entertaining and dry walk to the bus-stop, Sakurai-san."

"Any time!" Sho replied, nodding heavily. "Have a safe trip home and good night."

"Sweet dreams," Nino replied, an angelic smile on his lips, before he climbed into the bus.

When the doors closed, the man turned around again, darting his look through the bus's windows, meeting Sho's look. Their eyes stayed connected until the vehicle took off again, and their looks parted due to the distance, the strange magic bond between them thinning, but not fading.

That night, Sho had sweet dreams indeed, with Nino being the starring actor of the night. Again, Sho really liked his performance.

+

"Why do you never bring an umbrella?" Sho asked Nino the next time he met him in front of the café, just after the musician finished his performance.

Of course, it was raining again, and of course, Nino had no umbrella, so Sho offered him a place under his. Not that Sho minded. To the contrary, he didn't even know why he asked that stupid question, or what kind of answer he was expecting to hear. Maybe, he just wanted to tease the other man a little bit, or maybe, his brain had turned mush just at the sight of that beautiful man. There were a lot of possibilities.

Shrugging, the man smiled at Sho, hinting a roll of his eyes. "You know... as a poor artist, I can't afford one."

Sho chuckled amused at the cheeky reply. "That's not true, is it?"

"It's not true, indeed. I _could_ afford an umbrella," Nino smirked.

Grinning, Sho decided to play this game for a little longer. "So why you don't have one?"

It was Nino now, who stepped closer, without even having to be invited anymore. He stopped just right in front of Sho, the distance between them shrunk to just a few centimetres, and Sho swallowed a little at the closeness.

"I knew I wouldn't need one," the musician whispered, not breaking their eye contact.

Sho blushed.

"I knew _you_ would have one," Nino finished with a smirk dancing on his lips.

Slightly embarrassed, Sho eventually averted his eyes. "What if today, I couldn't have come to the café?"

"Would you want to miss my performance?" the other man asked back, grinning at Sho, teasingly.

"Not for anything in the world," Sho eventually admitted shamelessly, pulling together all of his courage to look back at the other man.

In the end, he managed to get another step closer. He could feel the heat Nino's body was emitting. A source of warmth for the grey, rainy day. His smile, a ray of light in the dark. For a few seconds, they just looked at each other. While close to each other, they were insecure about what was going to happen next.

"Would you be so kind and give me a walk to the bus-stop again?" Nino finally asked, breaking out from the somewhat awkward situation.

"That's why I brought the large umbrella again," Sho smiled.

"Thank you," Nino replied, before they both took a step back to turn forward and started walking.

"What you said last time... Do you really want to learn more about me?" Sho asked, turning a bit insecure again. The other man, though, just smirked at him.

"Everything you want to share."

+

Next time they met, it wasn't even raining. Nevertheless, Sho rushed to pay for his coffee after the music performance finished, so that this time he was the first one outside of the café, waiting in front of it for Nino to step outside too. Which the musician did, just about two minutes later, with a friendly smile dancing on his lips.

"Hey," he greeted.

"Hey," Sho replied, smiling widely.

Nino pointed up into the darkening, but only slightly cloudy sky, Sho's eyes following in the direction.

"It's not raining today," the musician noted, sounding a little cheeky, but the friendly smile on his face was still in place. 

Sho nodded slightly. "True observation, it's not."

"Still, you've got this," Nino's finger was now pointing at the item in Sho's hand, who in turn lifted the closed umbrella just a little bit.

"You never know, spring weather is unpredictable," he said and for a moment, the two men just looked at each other, before Sho finally continued. "Want me to walk you to the bus-stop?"

"Even if it's not raining today?" Nino repeated with his head slightly tilted, a raised eyebrow, and his smile slowly but surely turning into a cheeky smirk.

"Even if you don't need an umbrella, maybe you need some company?" Sho gave back, mirroring Nino's expression.

"I guess I wouldn't mind that," the musician answered, shrugging, but his cutely curled lips told Sho that actually he was at least a little happy about Sho's offer.

At least, Sho wanted to believe that, when the two started walking down the street, following the by now familiar path. After complimenting Nino on his performance and asking a few details about a new song he performed today for the first time, the musician started to show interest in Sho, again.

"How are things going for you? At work and such?"

The question made the man's heartbeat speed up and caused a warm and fuzzy excitement running through his whole body. Maybe he was stupid, maybe this wasn't even something to get excited about, but Sho couldn't fight the feeling. He didn't even want to. He liked it.

"At work, pretty good," the man started, trying to sound nonchalant and not to show his excitement too obviously. Further, it was true. Sho could be proud about his and his team's most recent achievements. "The new travel series we launched with the last issue of the magazine received quite a lot of positive feedback."

"I can imagine," Nino smiled. "It's really good!"

Sho blinked, surprised. "You read it?"

Could it be? Did the man perhaps buy the magazine Sho was working for, after he told him about his job as a travel magazine editor last time they shared an umbrella? If so, the pride that Sho was carrying in his chest would swell even more.

Nino nodded. "I picked one up the other day and read some of the articles. Pretty good stuff! And the photographs are amazing. I really like it!"

"I'm pleased to hear that," Sho replied, unable to prevent his smile from growing.

"How about otherwise?" Nino added, a slightly worried frown on his handsome face. "You said at work it's going pretty good. What about the rest?"

"Ah… it's nothing serious," Sho started, chuckling. So, Nino picked up on what the man tried to get out of his mind for the whole day. Maybe, he wasn't as good in ignoring his troubles as he hoped, if even the other man noticed that something was off.

"What's wrong?" Nino asked, his voice kind and patient.

Sho hesitated for a second, but then, he thought, why not share his thoughts about the topic with someone else. Someone he trusted, even if it might be strange to feel that way towards someone you just met a few times and only exchanged a few sentences with during a few minutes walk.

"It's just my parents," the man finally revealed, sighing slightly. "They are pretty annoying recently..."

"How come?"

Sho hummed, trying to find the right words. "Let's say, it seems that I am not fulfilling their expectations."

"Are you supposed to do that?" Nino offered calmly. "You're a grown man."

Sho liked the man's way of thinking.

"True, but… still..." he replied, rolling his eyes before releasing a sigh. "The thing is, they want me to get married. Sooner rather than later, apparently.

"Oh!" the musician next to him parted his lips, his eyes showing a mix of surprise and understanding at the same time. "I see… that's troublesome indeed."

"What about your parents, do they want you to get married too?" Sho asked, curiously.

After all, Nino was about his age, maybe he faced the same problems in his private life as most single mid-thirties usually did. Or... maybe he _was_ married, or at least not single, Sho thought, his heart cringing a little at the idea. He caught himself glancing quickly at Nino's hands, trying to spot a ring on his finger, that he could possibly have missed the last few times he looked at those cute hands. Shortly after, he felt himself releasing a small relieved sigh. There was none. But then, he caught his breath again. No ring didn't mean that Nino was still single. Damned, what was he even thinking? Sho cursed himself.

"I guess my parents accepted that I'm more of a _free spirit_ , so to say," Nino finally started explaining his own situation, even if Sho wasn't completely sure what exactly the man meant by that. "Or they simply gave up on me. However, I'm still single, and so far, I didn't mind," the man finished.

Sho realized that by now, his heart was beating like crazy, and he prayed that he didn't look as invested as he felt at that moment.

There were many possibilities on how Nino's reply could be interpreted. He was a _free spirit_ , he said. Was this supposed to be in relation to his artistic job and lifestyle, or could it possibly mean that Nino did not fall into what people still considered the _norm_ with regards to society and relationships? _So far_ he didn't mind being single, but did that mean that _as of now_ something had perhaps changed?

Most likely, Sho was overthinking the man's words, he knew that, but he couldn't help it. His thoughts went wild when it came to that man, just like his fast beating heart. He didn't plan to let it happen, but it did, probably started during their first meeting, and now, it was too late to ignore those feelings that were growing in Sho's chest.

"I wished my parents would be as accepting as yours," Sho said, pushing away his thoughts and returning to the actual problem.

"I'm sure, they just worry about you," Nino smiled. "They want you to be happy. And their definition of _happy_ seemingly translates to you being in a happy marriage."

"Apparently," Sho sighed. "They even try to set up an _arranged_ marriage for me, my mother sends me recommendations for _interested candidates_ via e-mail! And to be honest, I am not interested in marriage at all at the moment."

"That sounds really horrible, I feel sorry for you," Nino said with sympathy.

"Thank you!" Sho replied, finally feeling affirmed in his view of things. "But I fear, they will only stop if I tell them, I found someone by myself..."

"You think, they would leave you alone then?" the musician asked, adding to Sho's loud thoughts.

"I'm sure, they would," the other man nodded.

Then, Sho froze. He had an idea.

"Listen... This might be a really strange offer and I understand if you decline, but... hear me out, OK?" Sho started, excitement crawling up into his chest.

It was a crazy idea, he admitted to himself, and it would probably earn him at least a very questioning look by his conversation partner, but even before Sho could think twice, the request left his lips.

"What do you think about a small acting job for me and my parents?"

"What do you mean, exactly?" Nino asked curiously after an initial frown, even though the smug grin hanging at the left corner of his lips already indicated that he must have gotten an inkling about what Sho was going to say next.

The man hesitated for a second. If he wanted to rethink, if he wanted to take back his request, this was the right time to do so. But he didn't. Now that he started things, he wanted to finish them properly, even if risks of being called crazy were high.

Nino was still looking at him with the same curious look in his eyes, waiting for the other man to continue. Sho cleared his throat, before he kept on talking about his idea.

"I _really_ would like them to stop nagging me, at least for a while," he said, directly.

"So you want me to act as your _girlfriend_ ," Nino deadpanned, coming to a halt.

Sho stopped too, perplex.

"Uhm… well… it doesn't need to be a _girl_ friend," he started babbling, not even sure if his brain was prompting him the right words to say or if it was quivering from the blow. "I mean, you would make a beautiful woman too, I'm convinced by that," now did that sound slightly creepy? Sho wasn't sure. "But I thought if you act as my _boy_ friend, they will stop annoying me too."

Now, it happened. Now, Nino burst into laughter, and Sho blushed deeply. He knew he had messed up. Damned.

"Don't you have a real partner to show off?" Nino asked, surprising Sho that he even had thought of the option of him being taken. If he was, he wouldn't try to flirt with Nino so hard during their past few meetings...

"Wasn't interested in dating..." Sho clarified.

He wasn't lying. He had not been interested in dating recently, no matter if they were candidates from an arranged marriage, men he met during nights out with colleagues, or any other people. That was, until he met _him_. But that was a topic for another day.

"What a pity," Nino replied, and Sho wondered if he just heard a little bit of disappointment shining through the statement. He shook his head slightly, trying to calm his heart down, and then, the musician made his stand clear. "For your parents, I mean."

Sho's heart clenched a little and he let his look drop to the ground. Of course, what else did he expect the man to say? Sho tried not to show his own – real – disappointment, and instead, continued with his offer.

"Anyway, in case you are interested, you don't need to worry," he said. "You don't have to do much, I just would like to pretend being a couple for one dinner, that's all. You don't need to get all lovey-dovey with me or touchy or stuff. And, of course, I would pay you for your efforts. I understand though, if you decline, I'm sure you're busy enough and -"

"No problem."

"- you probably have much better acting offers than acting as my boyfriend in front of my parents, what am I even talking about..." Sho looked up again, staring at Nino, surprised. "– Wait, what did you say?!"

Grinning, Nino repeated. "I said, no problem. I'll do it."

"Really?!" Sho couldn't believe it.

"In addition to a small actor's fee I expect you to pay the bill for dinner and my travelling expenses, though," the other man added with a grin, before he finally resumed walking.

"That goes without saying!" Sho exclaimed, following on Nino's heel.

"Great. So, I'll give you my number," the musician said, reaching his hand into Sho's direction, who, after staring at him for another second, quickly pulled his phone from his jacket's pocket and handed it over for Nino to type in his contact data before returning the device. He smiled again. "Let me know date and place once you arranged dinner with your parents, and I'll be there half an hour earlier for a small briefing."

"You're _awesome_ ," Sho said, clasping the phone in his hands, still feeling perplex. "Thank you!"

"And _you_ are a little crazy," Nino chuckled. "But I like that."

Sho couldn't help but continue grinning at the other man. Then, they stopped their walk again at the bus-stop, and just a second later, the bus was already in sight.

"Well then, good night," Nino said, and Sho repeated his wishes when the man stepped into the bus.

Still happy over what Nino had said about him, that he decided to treat it as a compliment, Sho enthusiastically waved after the bus, not even sure, if Nino could still see him, until it turned around the corner.

Sho couldn't believe what he did just now, and even more incredible was that Nino had agreed to his request and had given him his number. This was truly crazy!

 

TBC


	3. Chapter 3

"Sakurai-san!"

When Sho arrived, Nino was already waiting in front of the Chinese restaurant that Sho's mother had picked for their dinner. The man took a deep breath when he saw Nino. The musician was wearing a pair of tight blue jeans, a smart looking navy suit jacket and a black dress shirt underneath that he had chosen for the evening. He wasn't wearing a tie, but he didn't need to to look fabulous. Nino already looked too good to be true, Sho thought, and he really had to pull himself together not to stare at the other. He couldn't help but blush a little, when his thoughts rushed ahead and for a moment he imagined what his parents would think when their son brought such an attractive man with him.

"Hey," was everything Sho could finally manage to say in between two probably very silly smiles when he took the few steps to the entrance and came to a halt in front of his _date_.

Nino smiled back. Not as silly as Sho, most likely.

They had agreed to meet in front of the restaurant about half an hour before Sho's parents would arrive, just to briefly talk about a few details about their faked relationship for the evening, like checking their background story – which wasn't actually that hard as they both thought it would be best to stick with the truth and maybe just spice it up a little bit – and decide on a few do's and don'ts and what else they might deem fit to discuss before the big act.

Sho – while trying his best to come up with something smart to say - was still trying hard not to stare at the other man, however, it was just useless. He _needed_ to look at that beauty, and he couldn't hold back his voice, either.

"You look…," _hot_ , Sho wanted to say at first, but managed to hold it back in the last second, before he settled on, "stunning."

It was still the truth, but it wasn't as intense as the alternative that still lingered on his lips, so he assumed it should be fine.

Nino, wearing a broad grin, playfully imitated a move with his hand to push an imaginative strand of hair out of his face – which wasn't there because he had styled his front hair back a little bit with some hair gel – and wiggled his eyebrows at Sho, jokingly.

"Don't I always look stunning?"

Immediately, Sho burst out into laughter. He really liked the man's sense of humour. But then, he still hadn’t discover anything about him that he _didn't_ like.

"Of course, you do," the man finally replied, dead serious. "I just didn't expect such chic clothes fitting you so well too, compared to your normal, more... casual style," he said before lifting his hand and pointing at Nino's head. "Your hair is different today. I like that too."

"Thank you," Nino replied, seemingly turning a bit shy, the confident act from just a minute before crackling down as if he knew that he did not need to put up an act in front of Sho.

Sho smiled. He liked and appreciated it when Nino's modest personality shined through in between his witty comments. Because this seemed to be the _real_ Nino. A very kind, cute, and slightly shy man, embarrassed but happy about an honest compliment. Sho didn't mind the cheeky side of the man, but what fascinated him most was the mix of confident wittiness, self-irony, honesty and kindness that the other had faced him with so far. It was interesting, intriguing and it made Sho want to get to know Nino better, each and every side of him. With his thoughts trailing off again, Sho realized, how much his small crush on Nino had grown, since he first encountered him at his favourite café and saw him performing there.

Suddenly, Sho started doubting if his plan was really any good, even to the point of considering scrubbing it. What was he even thinking about making the other act as his partner in order to make his parents stop nagging him with arranged marriages? And did he really think they would leave him in peace after he told them he was dating a wonderful man already and didn't need marriage meetings? What if they _liked_ his _boyfriend_ so much that they insisted on him coming along with Sho more often in the future? Taking into account how lovely Nino was, this won’t be too far from reality. Would Sho even mind? Would Nino mind? What was the real reason behind this, solving the situation with his parents or finding an excuse to invite Nino on a date? Sho sighed.

He had to admit that his plan wasn't well thought through. And more than that, deep inside, he probably knew quite well what he wanted. He wanted to rewind time back to the evening of the last conversation he had with Nino, delete his words, and take back that stupid offer of paying him to act as his boyfriend. What he really wanted to do – even back then already – was to ask Nino if he wanted to be his date for _real_ , but his courage had failed him at that point and it became a ridiculous situation like this. Sho liked that man. A lot. And if he was braver, and if he was lucky, maybe all of this could be real and Sho wouldn't even have to worry about _pretending_ to be in a happy relationship in front of his parents in order to keep them from annoying him. If all this just could be real...

However, taking back his words _now_ would be really audacious, wouldn't it? Nino probably wouldn't even accept Sho's request for a date for real, as it would look like as if he just didn't want to pay a man for doing his job. And who said that Nino would even agree on going on a date with Sho if he asked? Even if Nino was interested in men – at least, Sho had interpreted Nino's open-mindedness in a way that could allow this thought – and even if they seemed to get along well, it did not mean that Nino would be interested in _Sho_ that way, right? He could see him as a friend, a friendly stranger offering an umbrella – although Sho liked to think they passed that stage by now – and that was it. After all, Nino was some kind of celebrity. Why would he want to spend time with someone as boring as Sho?

Sho wanted to curse himself for his sudden insecurity. He really didn't have time for something like that now. It was too late to think about all the what ifs, and right now he couldn't change the situation anyway. He could just keep hoping that after tonight, there would be another chance to meet Nino, and maybe he would be courageous enough to ask him out to a real date then. Yes, he'd get his second chance, Sho wanted to believe.

"You said there’s no need for lovey-dovey or getting touchy, didn't you?" Nino asked, breaking through the cloud of Sho's thoughts and drawing his attention again. "However,..." the man tilted his head, "I'd like to add that if you want to portray a realistic relationship, at least a few slight touches would be helpful to make it believable. You know what I mean?"

"You mean, like holding hands?" Sho asked, fighting the blush on his cheeks. This was probably just Nino's professionalism speaking, not him wanting to actually hold hands with Sho, or was it? He was an actor, after all...

"Well, a small touch would do. We don't need to lace our fingers or so if you're feeling uncomfortable with that," Nino suggested earnestly.

 _Uncomfortable!?_ Sho screamed internally. He would _love_ to hold Nino's cute little hands and intertwine their fingers! He really wanted to know how it would feel to brush the smooth looking skin, to exchange their warmth through linking their hands... getting closer... He forced his train of thoughts to stop before they could drift into a less innocent direction.

"Or you could put your arm around me when your parents arrive, just to indicate that we're _together_. Something like that," the musician kept on sharing his ideas.

Now Sho felt his cheeks turning warm for real, but he swallowed and decided to play along.

"You mean, like _this_?"

He stepped right next to Nino and reached his hand around his waist to put it on his hip, pressing him slightly closer. It was almost scary how well Nino seemed to fit into his embrace, Sho thought, hoping that the other wouldn't notice the rapid beating of his heart or the slight shaking of his hand. 

When Nino looked at him with big eyes, reminding him of a cute puppy, Sho quickly pulled back. It would become hard for him to hold himself together and not to leap forward and pull that cute man into a real hug, if he kept looking at him like that.

"Are we supposed to kiss?" Nino finally asked, breaking the silence, but not their eye contact.

Sho almost choked on air on that suggestion.

" _Kiss_?!" Sho repeated in disbelief. "In front of my _parents_?!" Damned, his voice sounded much more jittery than he intended. But the suggestion shocked him.

Sho couldn't believe the earnestness of the other man. Was he really such a professional? Did he not feel nervous, just a little bit? Where was his cute embarrassment from before? Was _that_ an act too? Sho didn't know if he should feel respect towards that man for his professionalism or feel disappointed due to the fact that all this only seemed to have an impact on him, but not the slightest on Nino. Once more, it was confirmed that that man was an enigma.

Sho's reaction triggered an amused grin on Nino's face that quickly grew into a cheeky smirk. His eyes narrowed a little bit and when he asked his next question, Sho knew that the man was teasing him.

"I was just asking, in case you want to practice, you know?" Nino shrugged one of his shoulders playfully.

"You're joking," Sho gave back drily, but even if his brain knew that it was a joke, his heart still stumbled a little bit on hope.

"Obviously," Nino giggled amused. "Come on, don't look so scared, you're just as nervous as if you were _really_ introducing your chosen one to your parents."

Oh, if Nino knew...

"I'm just – Yeah, I'm a little nervous," Sho admitted with a chuckle, lifting his hand to scratch his neck.

"Don't worry, they won't disown you just because you bring a man to a _date_ ," the musician said, smiling, and reached his hand to give Sho a soft, encouraging punch on his upper arm. "After all, you told them what to expect, right? And you told me they sounded surprised, but not disappointed. They want you to be happy. We're just here to _prove_ that you are. We can do this!"

"You're right. It probably won't be that bad," Sho agreed with a nod.

Honestly, by now he had stopped worrying about his parents completely. His real worry now was, what would happen between him and Nino after all this was over. Because more than the lie that he was about to present to his parents, the lie of his actions towards Nino was the one that was starting to eat him.

+

"Mom, Dad, this is my boyfriend, Ninomiya Kazunari," Sho introduced his _date_ to his parents in what he hoped to be a confident voice, as soon as the couple reached the restaurant, about twenty minutes later.

This was ridiculous, it felt like this was the real deal, as if he was introducing his _real_ partner to his parents for the first time, not a stand-in for someone who didn't even exist.

It would be a lie if Sho said he wasn't nervous, and he feared that it showed in his stiff posture and the serious expression on his face, but he would have to pull through, survive the evening, and then figure out how to handle the rest of the problem.

Sho's slightly shaking hand was placed around Nino's waist, just the way they had _practised_ before, and again, it felt much too comfortable to be fake... Surprisingly, when he felt Nino's hand wandering to the small of his back to offer a gesture of support in return, it made Sho tingle excitedly and managed to relax him at the same time. This was weird.

"Your boyfriend…," Sho's father repeated, scanning his son's company with a slightly sceptic look. Although he was "warned" by his wife, he still seemed a bit surprised about the fact that his son was dating a man. 

Putting aside the fact that all this was an act, Sho had to admit he could understand his parents' surprise. Even if he knew that they were not opposed to gay people or anything, the possibility of their own son _not_ getting married to a woman had just never been a considered option for the family. So far, Sho had never really talked about what _he_ really wanted. With this, his parents' confusion right now was the understandable result of Sho's unwillingness to share his love life with them, so he shouldn't be surprised. They just did not know much about him in this aspect, besides Sho liking to be single. And that was not a lie. At least, not until now.

"Nice to meet you, Ninomiya-kun," Sho's mother instead took it upon herself to greet her son's companion, stepping forward and bowing politely. "Thank you for taking care of our son."

"The pleasure is all mine," Nino answered with the charming smile of an angel. He politely lowered his head in return as a greeting to Sho's mother and father, before the two couples finally entered the restaurant.

"I ordered a table for four at 7 pm," Sho explained to a waiter who showed up, and soon they were guided into the back of the colourful restaurant filled with artistic ink paintings and wooden ornaments, and the soothing sound of traditional Chinese music in the background.

There was a bit of small talk in between the ordering of drinks and food, and clinking glasses with the first serving of plum wine. Sho's parents were asking their son about his current projects at work before his mother asked Nino about his job (and her husband asking if he could make a living from it, which earned him a mean look by his wife, who deemed the question to be impolite), and the chit chat then returned back to frivolous like the changing weather, before finally switching to what Sho's parents were really interested in.

"Tell us, Ninomiya-kun," Sho's mother started, leaning forward a bit, a smile on her red-tinted lips and her eyes big and round, and full of curiosity. "How did you two meet? Sho here did not share many details about your getting-together yet, you know? He's very private about such things." The woman exchanged a short look with her husband, who just gave off a silent hum.

There was a hint of parental care mixed with slight disappointment in her voice, and Sho suddenly felt a little guiltier towards the two people who raised him and provided him with everything he wanted and gave him all the chances he could possibly get.

"Oh, that's a really romantic story, right?" Nino started off strong, pulling Sho out of his thoughts with his irresistible chuckle. "I began holding regular performances in his favourite café and he was in the audience each and every time I played -"

Nino let his look wander from Sho's mother to the son, the smile on his face was still in place, and the look in his eyes prompting the other to finish their story.

"I thought heaven sent an angel when I first heard his voice," Sho jumped on, adding some sugar for even more drama, even if he had to admit that he actually didn't need to polish up his words that much, as they were pretty close to his real thoughts.

"You charmer," Nino giggled, brushing Sho's elbow with his. Even if it was an act, the slight touch was enough to make Sho's heart beat a little faster.

"The first time I performed there it was raining, and I happened to forget to bring my umbrella," the man continued his story. "So Sho kindly offered to walk me to the bus station under his."

"Ohh," the woman cooed ecstatically. She clasped her hands in front of her mouth, before she proudly commented to her husband, "Our son is like a real gentleman!"

There it was again, Nino's angelic laughter. It caused a pleasant shiver to run down Sho's neck.

"Indeed. He's a real gentleman," the musician said in a soft voice.

After joining the man in laughter, Sho's mother started pouting, looking at her son.

"Seriously, Sho, why did you never tell us you have such an adorable boyfriend? It's a pity you've been hiding him from us!"

"Well, now you know," Sho offered with a shrug and a smug grin, and for a moment a thought crossed his mind and made his heart stumble a little. The thought that if he had such a charming boyfriend like Nino for _real_ , he probably wouldn't want to hide him from anyone, at all.

"You have to bring him to brunch next time, Sho, promise!" the man's mother insisted just a few minutes later, just as Sho had already figured what would happen.

He sighed internally, his mind automatically started to think about the pleasant implications following this statement, like how convenient of an excuse this could be to ask Nino out again. Would Nino agree to that? At least, Sho truly couldn't blame his mother to be smitten by Nino, just like nobody could blame him for falling head over heels for that man, right?

"You will come, right Ninomiya-kun?" the woman asked excitedly. "You will be surprised to hear if I tell you that Sho's father," she reached to her side to pat her husband's arm, "is a very talented cook."

"Please Darling, don't mention it," Sho's father growled silently. He averted his eyes, seemingly embarrassed by the turn of the situation.

"Oh is that so?" Nino added, before he turned to his side and asked Sho with challenging eyes and a warm voice, "Does that run in the family, perhaps?"

"I fear I did not inherit my father's talent in this aspect," the other man shook his head in regret, adding a nervous chuckle.

"So that's why you refused to cook for me so far, and I thought you're just too lazy after work," Nino continued their slightly flirty act, topping his performance with a cute pout.

"Trust me, the takeaway services cook much better than I do, even if they can't compete with my father," Sho ensured him.

"Oh please, could you stop pulling me in your flirts, guys?" Sho's father finally spoke up, not in a mean tone, but obviously embarrassed.

Sho blushed too, when he realised how the situation had gone slightly out of hand, while his mother started laughing, hiding her mouth behind her hand before she explained, "He's a bit shy when it comes to accepting compliments, don't mind him."

"Anyway, thanks you very much for the kind invitation, Sakurai-san, I feel honoured," Nino took the chance to bring the topic back to its starting point. "And please, call me Nino. Or Kazunari, if you like," he offered politely.

"That's really kind, thank you, Kazunari-kun," the woman smiled at him, before she had an idea. "Oh, oh, tell me, how do _you_ call him, Sho?" the woman asked, excitement shining in her eyes.

Sho couldn't help but blush again at this request, and he hoped his father didn't mind the way the conversation was drifting to, too much. "Me?" his voice almost broke. "Ah… uhm…"

The man's helpless gaze wandered to the man beside him, who just looked at him, the corners of his beautiful lips curled up into a sweet smile, amusement glittering in his eyes. Cutely, Nino tilted his head a little and he made everything worse when he joined the game.

"Yeah, _Sho-chan_ , no need to be embarrassed. Tell them how you call me," the man's sweet voice was almost a whisper.

"Ka…," Sho tried to start, averting his eyes nervously. He couldn't remember if they had talked about this as a preparation for dinner, or if his mind had just gone blank suddenly.

He pulled in the air sharply when he felt Nino's unexpectedly cold fingertips gently sliding on top of his hand and for a split second he pulled back his hand a little. Not because he didn't want to be touched, but because he was simply too surprised, by the coldness, as well as the gesture itself. His heart started pounding like crazy when he turned his head and looked at the man sitting next to him, whose eyes were searching for his now, looking a bit... insecure. Whatever insecurity was within him though, the young man managed to act over it.

"Ah, I'm sorry, Dear, did I surprise you?" Nino asked, darting an adorable smile at Sho. When he looked back at Sho's mother and the woman looked at him slightly confused, Sho was the one who reacted first.

"It's fine, Darling, it really just surprised me a little, come here," he answered, but then took Nino's hand in his, determined, letting his thumb slowly run up and down his smooth but cold skin, as if trying to warm it up a little bit with his touch.

"My hands are always quite cold, you know?" Nino directed at Sho's parents as a short explanation. "It always surprises people when I touch them."

"Well, how does the saying go? Cold hands, warm heart. Isn't it?" the woman sitting across the two men offered with a soft smile.

"Indeed," Sho nodded before drawing his look from his and Nino's connected hands and looking back up at the man sitting beside him. "And I may say that the saying really applies to..."

For a moment, he got lost in the man's brown eyes, until he finally snapped back out of the haze in his head and cleared his throat. He averted his eyes and instead looked at his parents, who were watching the couple, his mother curiously, his father without showing any deeper emotion.

Sho cleared his throat again when he carefully placed his free hand on top of Nino's, unable to resist touching the soft skin, and kind of hoping to warm his cold fingers up a little bit more with that gesture. Slightly pressing Nino's hand, he finally continued his sentence, as he looked back to his parents with a soft smile on his lips.

"To Kazu," Sho concluded. "I call him Kazu. It's simple. I like things simple."

Nino slightly pressed back Sho's hand and chuckled, and to Sho it was the most beautiful chuckle he ever heard.

"How adorable," his mother said, grinning broadly. She truly seemed happy for her son and his boyfriend. "You two are really close, aren't you?"

"Ah, I'm sorry, it's kind of a reflex, taking his hand, I mean..." Nino chuckled cutely once more when he realized that the woman's look was glued to their joint hands, but when he tried to pull away discretely, Sho didn't let him. The two men looked at each other again, but neither of them said anything.

Sho's mother giggled, waving her hand. "Oh please, don't mind us, you two are _so_ cute together, it's totally fine, isn't it?" she asked sideways, slightly poking her husband to trigger another reaction from him, who had fallen silent in the meantime.

"Well…," the man said after clearing his throat, adjusting his seating position in his chair.

He still had his arms crossed in front of his chest. He looked at Nino, who – completely immersed in his role, apparently – slightly stiffened, but didn't move away, and then he looked at Sho. Father and son met eyes for a few seconds, before the older man released a small sigh, nodded, and then a tiny hint of a smile could be spotted on his face. It was clear that whatever battle he fought with himself, it was over. 

"Whatever makes you happy," the man said in a voice much softer than Sho expected, sending a sincere smile at the couple.

With his heartbeat speeding up, Sho could feel the blood rushing to his head, accumulating in his cheeks. He just hoped he didn't look as red as he feared he did. This just felt too real, right now. The closeness to Nino, the nervousness about introducing his chosen one to his parents, his parents’ acceptance... it would be perfect, if it was just real.

"See?" Sho's mother said, smiling triumphantly at her son. "I told you, we'll accept anyone who you are happy with."

Pressing each other's hands softly, Sho and Nino exchanged a smile. Their plan worked out, apparently, and with that, Sho's parents would finally stop nagging their son further with any marriage candidates or talks about other mid-thirty people settling down in their lives. What would continue to nag at Sho from now on though – that much was pretty clear by now – would be the pressure of Sho's pounding heart, and the pain it would feel once his and Nino's hands parted again. He would continue wishing for Nino to be his _real_ boyfriend, or at least for the _something_ they shared this evening to be real, and it would haunt him until he could set things right.

+

"Rain seems to be our weather, after all" Nino said, smiling softly when the two men stepped outside of the restaurant together, and it was raining cats and dogs, contrary to when they arrived a few hours ago.

Sho's parents had just left, running to their car, Sho's father holding his jacket as a shield from the heavy rain above his and his wife's head. When they reached their car, the woman turned around and waved goodbye at the couple for a last time before she and her husband drove off into the night.

"I guess I have no choice but to walk you back to the bus-stop, then," Sho replied with a grin on his lips, turning to Nino after waving at his parents' car.

He really hoped that his voice sounded as convincingly confident as he planned. He didn't want the insecurity he was feeling right now to show through the crackling surface of his cool act. He was truly nervous. Much more than when he lied over the phone to his mother a few days ago, announcing that he would bring his boyfriend to dinner, and much more than he was before the actual fake date with Nino. He was even much more nervous than he could remember he had ever been.

"Actually, this time I brought my own umbrella," Nino said, reaching into the umbrella stand just behind him, next to the door of the restaurant underneath the front roof.

Seeing this was like a knife being pushed into Sho's heart. Now, everything was lost, he thought. Was he interpreting too much into that fact? Or was Nino bringing his own umbrella really going to ruin the last hope Sho had been carrying for the two of them getting close for real?

"I didn't know if you were coming together with your parents by car or such, so I thought, just in case...," Nino continued.

Despite mentioning this, Nino didn't seem to be in any hurry to open up the umbrella and step outside into the rain. Instead, he turned back to Sho and when their eyes met, they just looked at each other for a very long moment, nobody willing to say anything, before Nino finally kept on talking.

"But... if you are in for it, I'd rather have you accompany me... under _your_ umbrella," he said.

Sho swallowed. There it was again, that sweet smile on the musician’s face, and that warmth glimmering in his eyes, that just made Sho feel immensely comfortable. Maybe, just maybe... Oh, how much he hoped that there was just a tiny little chance that this adorable man would reciprocate his feelings, that this wasn't an act, or just a flirt, but more... That it was real.

"It would be my honour to guide you to the bus-stop," Sho finally replied, putting on his most perfect smile and even bowing a little to underline the humour he was trying to express to cover his real feelings. He offered his elbow to his _date_. "So, shall we go?"

It caused Nino to laugh cutely before he nodded, and that alone was worth the slightly stupid behaviour, Sho decided.

The man quickly turned to pick his own umbrella from the stand, opened it, lifted it between him and Nino, and then indicated to the other man to hook arms with him, "To make sure we both really don't get wet."

With another chuckle, Nino complied, stepping a bit closer and circling his arm around Sho's elbow, their bodies touching, and Sho's heart jumped, relieved that the other man had decided to play along with his offer.

"I liked how you called me _Kazu_ ," Nino then said after a few steps, his voice sounding a little hoarse, suddenly. He quickly cleared his throat. "I mean, pulling out that nickname was really convincing, I think. Good job!"

"I didn't say it in a funny way or something, did I?" Sho asked, feeling his cheeks blushing.

"No no, it's just... it's unusual for people to call me like that," the musician replied. "My closest family does... And my _boyfriend_ , apparently," he giggled, pushing himself a little against Sho, causing the man to stumble a bit and making him struggle to keep them both from getting wet.

"I'm sorry, it just seemed so fitting," Sho replied, feeling the embarrassed smile curling on his lips.

"It's fine. Like I said... I like you calling me that."

Looking to his side, Sho met eyes with Nino again, his heart stilling for a second, before it started beating again, harder, faster, braver, and he decided to make another move forward.

"Well, if you want, I can keep calling you that," Sho offered, even if he wasn't expecting the other man to accept. They really weren't _that_ close, and Nino was probably only being polite, anyway. Or did he really mean what he said? Still, Sho didn't dare setting his hopes up too high. It might just be too good to be true...

"I probably wouldn't mind," Nino replied silently, smiling.

Sho's heart tumbled, his grit crumbling a little again at the sight of this gorgeous, disarming smile. Oh how far he was gone, already, Sho thought, taking a deep breath, trying to calm his racing heart down. He tried his best to smile properly. They didn't talk for the next couple minutes, before Nino broke their slightly awkward silence.

"Do you think they believed it?" the man asked, causing Sho to look at him once more, frowning a little.

"Of course, they did!" Sho replied, convinced. For him, it was out of question to doubt their performance. "I _told_ you, you're a great actor, that was stunning! I might even say this was the performance of your life!" he added, jokingly.

"You're exaggerating," Nino chuckled. "But... that's really cute of you," he added, his voice sunken back to almost just a whisper.

"Excuse me?" Sho asked quietly, not sure, if he heard right. He felt his face blush.

"I mean, that's good," Nino said. "So they will leave you alone about meeting new girls and such, from now on..."

"At least, my mother will stop sending me applications for marriage candidates, yes," Sho chuckled.

His parents really seemed convinced by his and Nino's acting. They bought every minute of it. More than that, they – especially Sho's mother – made the impression of really supporting their son and his assumed boyfriend. Sho smiled crookedly, thinking back at his mother's adorable excitement. For a moment, he felt that guilt for having tricked her and his father, again.

"If anything, they will now start nagging me to bringing you along again," Sho eventually continued, picking up the topic that was bugging him since before the dinner, and again after his mother invited Nino.

"Like... for lunch and such...," he cleared his throat.

"Did you really not expect your mother asking you to bring your boyfriend along again in the future?" Nino offered with a raised eyebrow.

Damned, so _he had_ thought everything through that far, Sho concluded. Was Nino expecting more _jobs_ now? The man cursed his heart beat, that quickened again at the thought of spending more time like this evening together with the man besides him. Still, he could also feel his heart starting to feel heavier. Yes, he indeed wanted to spend more time with Nino, but he didn't want to spend money for it. Not because of the money, of course, Nino deserved every cent, but because Sho would prefer this _thing_ between them to be real...

"My mother was smitten by my _boyfriend_ ," Sho finally said. _Not just my mother_ , Sho added in his thoughts, but was too shy to admit that out loud. "I admit, I should have expected that."

Nino chuckled amused. "She's adorable, your mother," he continued, smiling. "She really wants you to be happy. I can imagine how much she tried to bring happiness into your life, even if you didn't appreciate her way of trying to do so."

"True...," Sho murmured. His parents really only wanted the best for him. He should be grateful for that.

The two men fell silent again on their walk for the next couple of minutes, their shoes causing small splashing noises when walking through the puddles formed on the wet pavement. Nino's arm was still circled around Sho's elbow. The part where they touched was feeling warmer than the rest, even if Sho was pretty sure that Nino's hand must be freezing, being exposed to the cold rainy weather. His suspicion got confirmed when the musician pushed his free hand into his jacket's pockets. Sho hoped, it wouldn't be too bad, and that Nino would have to let go of him, if he became too cold. Then, Sho pondered over the idea if he should offer to hold Nino's hand to warm it up, but in the end, he didn't. He was still too shy.

Instead, when realizing how close they had gotten to the bus-stop, his brain came to another topic that still needed to get resolved.

"So… About your fee…" Sho finally started, breaking the silence.

"Hm?" Nino looked at him, surprised.

"Dinner lasted for about 3 hours," the other man continued. "And we had a small briefing before that, for about 30 minutes. For your travel expenses I thought I calculate one extra hour, is that OK? So I thought to multiply that time by an hourly fee of -"

Nino stopped, his arm slipping from Sho's elbow. Confused, Sho stopped too and turned around, looking at Nino while instinctively readjusting his own position and making sure that the other didn't get wet.

"I don't want it," the musician said. His voice sounded calm as usual, but the expression on his face had changed into a serious one. Serious and... there was something else that Sho couldn't quite pinpoint.

"Excuse me?" Sho asked, frowning at the man.

"Your money," Nino said. "I don't want it," he repeated.

"What?" Sho was confused. "But it was a job, your performance was amazing, I stole your evening, I promised to–"

"Listen," Nino started reasoning. He averted his eyes, and for a moment, there was the _real_ him shining through again. The shy, maybe even truly embarrassed Nino. The man took a deep breath before he directed at Sho, "You're a really nice guy, that's why I wanted to help you with this. I don't want your parents to annoy you. If I could help with what I did tonight, I'm glad and that's fine for me. I had a very nice evening and a free dinner, after all. I... I don't want you to _pay_ me for that. It wouldn't feel right..."

Sho's heart had started beating faster while listening to Nino's words. He wasn't sure if he was interpreting those words in the correct way, or rather he was scared to interpret too much into them, allowing hope to grow over what might be realistic. Was this simply a polite gesture of Nino, declining Sho's part of the deal, or was there more behind in those words? Sho swallowed.

"Are you sure?" he asked, carefully.

"Yes," Nino replied, nodding determined.

"OK, if you insist...," Sho continued, unsure how to react to the whole situation now. "Then, thank you very much for your company. I had a nice evening too… a very nice one." One, that Sho would love to repeat one day. Still, he felt too shy to say this out loud.

Nino smiled again, sincere. "But call me again, if you want."

"For... another _job_?" the other man asked, his heart skipping a beat.

He had thought about this. It was a possibility, hiring Nino again. Not optimal, but it was a possibility. To see Nino again, to be close to him again. To hold his hand again, to press his body close again... But if he agreed, and placed the two of them once again in this client and actor situation, would this also mean he had missed his _real_ chance with Nino? After all, he couldn't expect Nino to forgo his payment every time, except he -

"For another _date_ ," Nino replied. "Just in case you didn't notice, I really like spending time with you."

Sho held his breath. Did he really just hear right? He must have, but wasn't it too good to be true? Could it really be that Nino answered his feelings? Sho didn't dare to hope, didn't dare to ask. He just stood there, holding the umbrella between them, the rain drumming against the plastic and shielding him and Nino from the rest of the world, as if it created a magic spell that surrounded them.

"I do have a condition, though," Nino added after dropping his look for a moment, clearing his throat and shifting his weight from one foot to another. He looked back up, searching for eye contact with Sho.

"What would that be?" Sho asked, not sure if his quiet words were louder than his heart beat that was echoing the drumming of the rain drops.

"Next time, I don't want it to be fake," Nino said, looking right into Sho's eyes.

"What -"

"No money involved. Of course, I won't refuse if you insist on paying for my food again," the musician intervened, smirking, before Sho could even pronounce a useful sentence. "So... Dinner for two, a cinema date, whatever you want, I'm in. I mean, if you don't want your parents to think we broke up or anything, we should have some stories about our dating experience on hand for when we meet them at lunch next time, right?"

There was Nino's cute chuckle again, even if it sounded less confident than usual, even a bit insecure maybe, but still, it was adorable.

"Listen," Nino continued, as if he was trying to fill the silence between him and Sho with words to escape the awkwardness. "I know you said you're not interested in dating, and tell me if I'm wrong, but I got the feeling that we get along quite well so... just think about it..."

By now, realisation was setting in and Sho would have been ready to reply, if his words weren't stuck in his throat together with his tumbling heart. He wanted to leap forward and throw his arms around the other man, but to his surprise, it was Nino, who made the first move.

Slowly, the musician lifted his hands to gently cup Sho's face, his cold fingers spreading a tingling sensation over his cheeks with the light touch. The man's eyes were deep and filled with feelings that Sho had thought were simply an act for the past three hours, but it felt so damned _real_ now, especially following Nino's small speech. It made Sho's heart stop beating for a second.

When the man wanted to part his lips to set things right, to tell Nino that he had misunderstood, that even if Sho up to now was probably really not interested in dating, he had changed his mind the moment he met Nino, the other man muted him immediately.

Soft lips were being pressed against Sho's, fitting perfectly in the gap they had created in the attempt to speak, melting into perfection. The touch was gentle and warm, despite the cold surrounding them, and determined at the same time. It was soft and long, as if it was trying to stretch a short moment into eternity, even if that was not possible.

It _was_ too good to be true. But after the first kiss, there was another one, Nino's lips back against Sho's, this time a little more pushing, a little more wanting, a little more craving. Sho's heart and mind finally understood, that _this_ had nothing to do with acting anymore.

This had nothing to do with pretending being a couple, this had nothing to do with fulfilling a job. This was _real_ , even if he honestly had a hard time believing that it was _really happening_. For the first time in years Sho had fallen in love, and even if they didn't know each other for long, as oddly as it seemed, the one he fell in love with seemed to reciprocate his feelings. Sho couldn't believe it.

Even when the musician ended the second kiss, Nino hesitated to draw back. His hands were still touching Sho's face, his fingers slowly caressing his skin, while his panting breath was hitting Sho's wet and slightly swollen lips. Nino's cheeks were rosy, and his now again opening eyes filled with warmth, need, and affection.

Although Sho wanted to do something, to put his arms around Nino, pull him closer and repeat what they just did for the whole night and longer, he was unable to move. He was too shocked, as he truly didn't expect this to happen.

Nino searched for Sho's eyes again and Sho immediately was lost again in their warm colour.

"I like _you_ , it's that simple," the musician finally said, smiling as he tilted his head. "You like simple things, don't you?"

Sho blinked, still unable to properly react to the situation. Slowly, Nino let his arms sink, the cold but soft touch of his hands leaving Sho, who still couldn't move.

"Well then, Good night, Sho-chan. You know where to find me," Nino whispered.

The smile on his face that was hard to read, this time. He did not seem as confident as he acted earlier. Was he really serious about what he just said? Was he confused by Sho's lack of response?

Seeing Nino leave, stepping out of the protection of the umbrella into the rain, getting closer to the bus-stop all by himself, even starting to sprint in order not to get too wet before he'd be able to seek shelter underneath the small glass roof covering the bus-stop, and the vehicle already showing up at the end of the street made Sho realize. He had to react _now_ , or it could be too late. So, he finally pulled himself together and followed his heart's undeniable call.

"Kazu, wait!"

Sho finally managed to make his stiff muscles move into action, and leaped forward, reaching for Nino's hand. He caught it, slightly pulled at it, made Nino turn back to him, a confused expression showing on his face. He pulled a little more, until Nino's small and slender body stumbled right into the strong embrace of Sho's arms. He fit perfectly.

In the process, Sho had dropped his umbrella, that was now lying next to him on the wet ground, abandoned, in favour of Sho being able to wrap both of his arms around the other man and hold him as tight as possible. The rain was pouring down on them, ruining Nino's perfectly styled hair, creating a mess of wet black on his forehead. It was sliding down Sho's neck, drenching his dress shirt, but apparently, neither of them cared.

Nino didn't move until Sho loosened their embrace, just to be able to look at him. The look in their eyes said more than a thousand words, and shortly after, Sho leaned forward again to capture Nino's lips in one more kiss, even more intense, even more passionate than before. Pressing his happily smiling lips against Sho's, Nino buried his hands in the back of the man's coat, holding onto him as if he intended to never let him go, and Sho stayed, willingly. Stayed as long as their kiss would last, and would stay, as long as Nino wanted him to. If need be, forever.

+

That evening, Nino let three of his buses past without getting on. Instead, he and Sho – after exchanging another wonderful and meaningful kiss – sat down underneath the small roof of the bus-stop and cleared up any possible misunderstandings between them. Once and for all, they clearly stated their feelings for each other, which – obviously – corresponded.

They laughed about the whole fake date thing and about the fact that it was even necessary for them in order to reach this moment now. Nino assured Sho that his feelings were real and Sho pushed the wet strands of hair out of the musician's forehead, so that he could place another kiss on it, before confessing his love, too. Being directly honest with each other, not using any excuses, and not beating around the bush anymore, wasn't such a bad idea actually. Sho chuckled at the thought of how much easier things could have been if he was just honest and a little less shy, from the beginning. He jokingly blamed it on the lack of dating during the last couple of years. He loved how amused Nino was about that joke. He loved everything about that man.

Eventually, Nino ended up catching a cold from soaking in the rain for too long, so he had to cancel the performance at the café that was scheduled on the next day. It made Sho feel guilty, especially since the first time he met Nino, offering his umbrella to the other man was supposed to keep him from getting sick – or at least that was Sho's excuse. However, Nino wasn't mad at Sho – at least he promised not to be, under the premise of Sho going to buy him some medicine and ingredients for chicken soup and bringing it to Nino's place after work.

Of course, Sho complied, not only buying the items on his way to Nino's apartment, but also a bunch of flowers and a movie he wanted to suggest watching together while cuddling up to Nino and taking care of his cold.

Nino agreed, and so it happened, that their first real date became the first of many relaxed and cozy home dates. Since then, Sho never had to _pretend_ to have a boyfriend, ever again.

 

\+ END +

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, sorry for the superlate update! Things happened and I just couldn't find the right moment to post this but now here it is =) I hope you enjoy the last chapter of this cheesy little story. Let's see what I'll write next. At the moment I don't have anything else to share but I hope to regain more energy for writing soon. Take care everyone and have a nice weekend! 
> 
> Sky <3


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